I GUESS YOU HAD TO BE THERE

WE ALL HAVE CERTAIN MEMORIES WHICH MAKE PERFECT SENSE TO US AND APPEAR TO EVEN SOMETIMES BE HILARIOUS.  EVENTS WHICH HOLD SIGNIFICANT IMPORTANCE TO US OFTEN DO NOT SEEM ALL THAT INTERESTING TO ANYONE ELSE.   I HAVE USED THE PHRASE, "I GUESS YOU HAD TO BE THERE" COUNTLESS TIMES.  YEARS AGO,  LORRIE MORGAN SANG A COUNTRY SONG CALLED "I GUESS YOU HAD TO BE THERE."  THE WORDS TO THE SONG ITSELF WERE THE USUAL WORDS TO A SAD, CHEATING COUNTRY SONG, BUT THE CHORUS HOLDS SPECIAL INPORTANCE TO ME.
  
                                                "WELL, I GUESS YOU HAD TO BE THERE.
                                                  YOU REALLY HAD TO BE THERE.
                                                  SOME THINGS YOU JUST CANT EXPLAIN,
                                                  ITS JUST NOT THE SAME.
                                                  I GUESS YOU HAD TO BE THERE."
  
I ALWAYS LOVED THIS SONG, BUT I LOVE THESE WORDS EVEN MORE TODAY.  I GUESS YOU HAD TO BE THERE IN ORDER TO UNDERSTAND HOW CHAOTIC MY LIFE ONCE WAS.  YOU HAD TO BE THERE TO COMPREHEND HOW LOST AND MISERABLE I HAD BECOME.  I GUESS YOU HAD TO BE THERE TO KNOW HOW EASILY I DESTROYED EVERYTHING I TOUCHED, HOW LONELY I WAS DUE TO MY OWN ACTIONS AND HOW SINFUL MY LIFE WAS ON A DAILY BASIS.  YOU HAD TO BE THERE TO KNOW THAT MY LIFE WAS THE DEFINITION OF SELF DESTRUCTION. 

I GUESS YOU HAD TO BE THERE TO UNDERSTAND WHY I AM SO GRATEFUL TODAY.  I KNOW SOME PEOPLE GET TIRED OF HEARING ME TALK ABOUT THE LORD ALL THE TIME, BUT, IF YOU HAD BEEN WHERE I WAS, YOU WOULD CONSTANTLY PRAISE HIS NAME TOO!  I CLEARLY REMEMBER THE HORRIBLE DAY WHEN I HAD REACHED ROCK BOTTOM.  IT WAS THEN THAT THE LORD REACHED DOWN AND TOUCHED MY SOUL.  I GUESS YOU HAD TO BE THERE.  THAT WAS A DAY OF UTMOST IMPORTANCE AND I WANT TO TELL THE WORLD EXACTLY HOW MUCH GOD DID FOR ME!  GOD SHOWED UP AT THE TIME OF MY LIFE WHEN I NEEDED HIM THE MOST, WHEN I WAS ALONE AND DEVESTATED BY THE CHOICES I HAD MADE.  IT WAS IN MY DARKEST HOUR THAT GOD APPEARED AT MY SIDE.  I GUESS YOU HAD TO BE THERE TO KNOW HOW MUCH THIS MEANT TO ME.  I AM ETERNALLY THANKFUL THAT OUR LORD CHOSE TO BE THERE.  WORDS CANNOT DESCRIBE HOW MUCH GOD HAS DONE FOR ME!

IF HE DID IT FOR ME, HE CAN AND HE WILL SURELY DO THE SAME FOR YOU!  OUR GOD IS A GENTLEMAN.  HE IS WAITING FOR YOU. 

THANKS FOR READING MY "NOTE"
LOVE,
M